Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Fountain yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Fountain is a city in Fillmore County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, Fountain had a population of 409. Fountain is the western terminus of the Root River segment of the Root River State Trail. Local attractions include the Fillmore County History Center.
Its first post office opened in 1870. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 410 in 2010, 409 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Fountain in 1912
Passages that mention Fountain, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Fillmore County, Minnesota (Volume 1)1912 · page 140Read the page →
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Preston-Iiinours Branch. In 1870 all the gaps being filled up, the Southern Minnesota was running trains from the Mississippi to Wells. The railroad promoters were interested in Lanesboro, Fountain and Wykoff, and were in hopes that these places would grow in such a manner as to eliminate Preston from among the important villages of the county. Accordingly, the company refused to establish any stations between Lanesboro and Fountain, and those desiring to take the train from Preston had
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History of Fillmore County, Minnesota (Volume 1)1912 · page 366Read the page →
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Early History. The land upon which the village of Fountain now stands was first taken by a company of speculators, who held it for a few months. The first actual settler upon the land was Patrick Mangan, who arrived early in the fifties and commenced improvements, building a log hut on section 10, south of the present site of the village. When the Southern Minnesota began pushing its line into Fillmore county, a townsite company was formed between H. W. Holley, D. J. Cameron, and Mr.
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Fountain, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (4), the Library of Congress (1), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1865
2024
2009
2009
2005
